Furry Friends
by Noi4290
Summary: Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde are sent to investigate 3 missing animals. Deja vu, right? Wrong. While figuring out the cases, they stumble onto something a whole lot bigger.
1. Chapter 1

**So... yeah... basically my first fanfiction, sorry for the really short first chapter, but more are on the way! (Longer ones) Please, please, _please_ don't hesitate to review! Constructed criticism _is_ appreciated! Thank you, and enjoy the story! :)**

* * *

Nick Wilde got out of the police cruiser and began walking in slow motion towards the station. He wore his usual "cool dude" shades, as he liked to called them. In one hand, a cup holder with two steaming coffees. In the other, he held a bag of donuts. He slowly sauntered up the steps and into the police station. Still in slow motion, he walked up to the reception desk, where a large cheetah was typing away on the computer in front of him. Next to the cheetah was a small rabbit officer, Nick's police partner Judy Hopps.

"What's up, Whiskers?" He asked casually, his eyes half lidded and a smirk on his face.

"Um… just looking something up with Clawhauser is all…" she said with a nervous grin on her face. She looked back at the screen that Clawhauser hadn't looked up from since Nick had walked in and giggled. Realizing her mistake she looked up but was too late. Nick was already behind the counter and was staring at the computer.

"You're watching Gazelle music videos…?" He laughed.

"Well, I finished my paperwork, so yeah." She stated, still watching the screen.

Nick handed Judy one of the coffees from the cup holder and began drinking the other one. He took a donut out of the bag and started munching on it.

"Besides," Judy smirked, "It can't be any worse than walking in slow motion…"

"Whatever," he muttered, "I looked cool anyway."

"Yes, you looked so cool with the cars whizzing past behind you."

He frowned. Sometimes that bunny got on his nerves. But she was his friend, so he didn't really care.

"Hopps! Wilde!" Yelled a booming voice coming out of an office down a hallway.

Nick and judy looked at each other wide-eyed, decided to leave the donuts with Clawhauser, (A choice they regretted later on) and walked towards the office. Inside was a large cape buffalo, Chief Bogo, with his usual angry expression plastered on his face.

"You wanted to see us… Chief?" Judy started, a bit nervous by his angry expression and booming voice. (But then, when wasn't he angry?)

Chief Bogo set a file onto his desk. They opened it to see a picture of a young male tiger who looked to be in his 20's, and other details about him."This is Claud B. Alas. He went missing from his apartment yesterday." He set another file on the desk. They again opened it to see a picture of a female lion, with more details of her."Elizabeth Manecala. She never came

back from the grocery store." He set yet another on the desk. They opened it to a male monkey's file. "Banana K. Inning. Went missing from his home in the middle of the night."

Judy narrowed her eyes as she looked at the three missing animals' files. Three missing mammals. She thought back to her and Nick's first case. It had been four months since their first case and had cracked many since. Would they be able to find them? Hopefully they wouldn't have a time limit this time…

"I want you two to find out where they are, who took them, and why." The Chief said to them.

"So you think only one person took them? That the cases are all connected?" Nick questioned.

"I do." The chief answered, looking at his officers, "And I think you two are the best to find out."

"We won't let you down, sir." Judy said to Chief Bogo, her heart soaring. He thought they would crack the case, and obviously with ease!

The two partners walked out with the case files in their paws. "So, where do you think we should start?" Judy asked Nick.

"I think… we should go check out that tiger's apartment. But… let's finish our coffee and donuts first." He grinned.

Alas, when they got back to the reception desk, Clawhauser was still there, and so was the bag of donuts… minus the donuts. Clawhauser had sprinkles on his lips as he gave them a weak smile. "Um… sorry?" He said to them, a bit of donut flying out as he spoke.


	2. Chapter 2

**Okay, so I'm having some troubles with uploading the story and such, but I think I'm starting to get the hang of it. If it takes a while for another chapter or something else happens, please don't be too mad I'm trying my best! xD With that said, I hope you enjoy the story! =)**

* * *

The place reeked. Judy's nose crinkled up in disgust as she and Nick entered the noxious apartment. She could hear Nick gag. "What is that smell?" He groaned.

"I don't know, but let's just hurry up so we can get out of here." She responded, beginning to look around in the apartment. "Why don't you look over there," she said, pointing to a hallway with two doors leading off into different rooms. "I'll look over here." She then turned to scope said area.

Nick walked into the hallway and through one of the doors, into another room. Judy entered the kitchen and searched through the piles of papers strewn across the kitchen countertop. Her interest perked when she saw something shiny through all the papers. She reached out to grab it, but before she could, she heard Nick scream, "OH. MY. GOD!"

She rushed out of the kitchen and into the room where she heard the scream. It looked like it must have been the tiger's bedroom. "Nick! What happened?!" She asked him frantically.

He pointed to a poster hanging on the wall of the bedroom, his eyes wide and his mouth hung open. On the poster were three ferrets wearing quite a bit of bling, and at the top in big lettering, it said "Ferret Wap". "That is _the_ best band ever!" He told her, looking intently at the poster. "This guy's got good taste." He smirked.

Judy crossed her arms and her foot started thumping frustratingly. He looked over at her. "What?" He asked innocently.

"Don't scream like that!" She glared at him. "I thought you had found something! Or… something had found you…You scared me half to death!"

"Aw, calm down, Carrots. I'm fine. I wouldn't expect you not to scream if you had found a Gazelle poster." He chuckled. Seeing as she still looked mad, he added, "I'm sorry."

"It's fine," she sighed, "Just keep looking in here." She walked out of the room and back to the kitchen, where she picked up the shiny object that had caught her attention. It was a little plastic card that said:

 **YMCA**

 **(Young Mammals' Caboodle Association)**

 **Claud B. Alas**

 **Deluxe Membership**

She studied the card and thought to herself, _Deluxe membership? He must go to the YMCA quite often… Lots of people must know him! Maybe someone there will know where he went!_

"Hey, Whiskers!" Nick called, snapping her out of her thoughts. She walked back into the bedroom to see Nick squatting on the ground, squinting at something lying there.

"Did you find something?" She asked him.

"I think so." He pulled out some tweezers and a little baggie. He picked up whatever he was looking at with the tweezers and put it in the bag. He held the bag up to Judy. She peered at the bag. Inside was a piece of fur.

"What kind of fur do you think that is? It can't be the tiger's, his fur is orange and that fur is gray." She asked him, her eyes still locked on the fur, trying to identify it.

"I'm not sure. But.. maybe if I lick it…" he started opening the bag.

"Nick! No!" She slapped the hand about to open the little bag. "That's _evidence!_ Plus, you can't just go around licking things willy nilly, that's disgusting!"

"Sorry, jeez! Would _you_ like to lick it?" He snickered, holding out the bag to her. She grabbed it and scowled.

"Let's just send it to the lab. While they figure out what fur it is, we'll be visiting the Y." she grinned.

"The Y?" He smirked. "Why?"

Ignoring his joke, she held out the YMCA membership card for him to read. "Because Claud B. Alas is a member there."

"Aaaand…?" He inquired, his hands making a rolling motion.

"And I think someone there might know what happened to him." She stated proudly.

"Mmmkay." He smirked then put on his aviators. He then turned a mock serious. "Let's do this."

* * *

Once they had dropped off the fur sample and gotten back into their police cruiser, it was only a twenty minute drive to the YMCA. Judy was behind the wheel, and nick was staring out the window, his shades still on. His arm was resting on the edge of the car and he drummed his fingers on the car to the beat of "Livin' on a Prairie" by John Bovine, a cow famous for his rock 'n roll songs.

Judy didn't care for rock, but Nick did, and it was hilarious to hear him singing along to it. When they finally pulled into the parking lot of the YMCA, she basically had to drag Nick out of the car and onto his feet, because he claimed to be "exhausted", but she knew he was just being lazy. She frowned. "You know, the YMCA has an indoor pool," she said to him.

"And…?" He looked up at her, confused.

"And a lot of people go to the YMCA…" she continued.

"I don't see where you're going with this, Carrots."

"I'm sure lots of girls are swimming in there…"

His eyes widened when he finally understood what she meant. "Oh… Oh!"

He grinned. "Then what are we waiting for?!" He got up and strolled to the entrance to the YMCA. She hopped after him. The things she had to do to motivate him...

They went inside and stood in front of the reception desk. Sitting at the desk was a female deer. She looked up at them and said, "Hello, how can I help you?" Judy pulled the picture of Claud B. Alas out of her pocket and showed it to the receptionist.

"My name is Officer Judy Hopps," she pointed to her partner, "And this is my partner Officer Nicholas Wilde, we're with the ZPD. This is Claud B. Alas. We understand he has a membership here and is a frequent client, is this correct?" The deer adjusted her glasses and squinted at the photo. Her eyes flashed with recognition.

"Oh, yes! Mister Alas. Yes, he's one of our most recurring patrons! He comes here _every_ weekend!" She smiled, then frowned, looking worried. "Why are the cops looking for him?"

"I'm afraid Mister Alas went missing from his apartment last night…" she told the deer, who obviously knew him. She hated to be the bearer of bad news. The deer gasped and shook her head.

"That's just awful, but… why are you here?" She asked them.

"We were hoping someone here would have any idea on _why_ he went missing, and _where_ he would go."

"Oh, well you could talk to Lucas." She pointed over to a jaguar lifting weights. "They always came here together."

They told the deer thank you then walked off to talk to the jaguar. "Excuse me?" Judy asked. No answer. "Lucas?" Still no answer.

"Ay, buddy!" Nick tried. He frowned, then reached over to pull out one of the earplugs he had spotted in the jaguar's ear. Startled, the jaguar set the large weight down and then sat up, panting.

"Can I help you?" He glared at them.

"Yes, actually. Hi, I'm Officer Judy Hopps and this is Officer Nick Wilde." She held out the picture of Claud B. Alas. "Do you know this tiger?"

The jaguar wiped his arm across his face then said, "Yeah, my old buddy Claud! What'd he do?"

"He went missing." Nick frowned. The jaguar's eyes shot up. "We were hoping you might know why." Lucas thought for a bit.

"Hm… well, recently, I dunno… he's been hangin' out with some shady lookin' dudes." He knit his brows. "Maybe they have something to do with him goin' MIA."

"Do you know these people? Any idea who they are, where they live… anything?" Judy asked.

"Well… I'm pretty sure I remember Claud telling me about one of 'em. Think he said his name was Rocco Blancan. Goes by Loco Rocco. Where he lives though, can't tell you that." Judy got out a notepad and wrote down the information.

"Okay. Thank you very much, mister…?"

"Sonaro. Lucas Sonaro."

"Mister Sonaro." She smiled and walked off with Nick. Once in the car, she said, "Alright. Now all we need to do is find this "Rocco Blancan"."

"Yep." Nick responded, a little disappointed that they weren't able to go by the pool area. "How do you suppose we do so, Cottontail?" He smirked, his eyes half-lidded.

"Easy! We have Clawhauser do it." And with that, they were off towards the police station.


	3. Chapter 3

**So this was originally planned to be a Wild Hops story (NickxJudy) but we pushed that aside because I started getting more into the mystery, but there was also the fact that I can't write romance to save my life. :I But, without further ado, I give you, (drumroll please) Chapter 3! Enjoy!**

* * *

Nick groaned, growing impatient as he watched the cheetah type away on the computer. He and Judy had gone back to the station and told Clawhauser to find their suspect, Rocco Blancan. They had been waiting for quite a bit, and Nick was bored. Judy glared at him, and he sighed and waited.

"Aha!" They finally heard the cheetah exclaim, "Here he is. Rocco Blancan. He's a 22 year old raccoon." Judy and Nick peered over Clawhauser to look at the raccoon. He was a gray raccoon who looked quite young. Like other raccoons, he had a mask etched onto his face.

"Can you find where he lives?" Judy asked, still looking at the raccoon. Clawhauser worked some more finger magic.

"Yes, he lives in an apartment on Hawthorn Rd. at an apartment complex named Diego Dingo's Ding-Dong Digs. Boy, that's a tongue-twister." He printed out the location and handed it to Judy.

"Thanks, Benjamin!" Judy grinned and skipped out of the station.

Nick followed Judy out and they got in the car. Judy started the car and they headed towards Diego Dingo's Ding-Dong Digs. Nick turned to her. "So, what kind of name is Diego Ding-Dong's… whatever apartments?"

"I think it's run by a Dingo. And they're nocturnal, plus the raccoon lives there. I think the whole complex may be nocturnal animals…?" She responded, still driving.

"Oh. Then why are we going there during the daytime?" He asked, looking out the window at the sunny atmosphere.

"Because… we need to find Blancan, and then find Alas… then Manecala, then Inning…" she told him, realizing how much they still had to do. Nick grumbled and looked back out the window. Judy started thinking. _The fur we found at Alas's apartment was gray. Blancan's fur is gray…_ "Nick!" She exclaimed out of nowhere, causing him to sit up quickly and hit his head on the roof of the car.

"Yeesh Carrots, you trying to kill me?" He said, scowling at her.

"Of course I- ...am not! I just thought of something!" Judy said, beaming. "The fur at Alas's apartment is gray, and the raccoon's fur is gray!" She told him, relaying her thoughts. "What if Blancan was at the apartment and something happened, causing some of his fur to be left there?" He raised an eyebrow at her and smirked.

"Clever bunny."

* * *

They reached the apartment and walked inside to find what seemed to be a lobby. There were a few plastic chairs and a little desk, where an orange-ish tan dog sat, reading a newspaper. "Can I help youse two?" He asked them.

"Hello, I'm Officer Judy Hopps and this is Officer Nick Wilde, we're with the ZPD." she told the Dingo, repeating what she had said every time they went somewhere as cops. "We're here to speak to Mister Rocco Blancan." The Dingo's eyebrows knitted together.

"Name's Diego Dingo, and Mister Blancan lives upstairs in apartment B9." he said, pointing to the stairs. "Right up there." They thanked Diego then started up the stairs. They arrived at apartment B9, but something was off about it. The door wasn't closed all the way. It was hanging on its hinges, like it had been forcefully opened. Nick and Judy looked at each other worriedly then back to the door. They pushed open the door and walked into the room.

* * *

Diego Dingo watched the police officers walk up the stairs and waited until he heard their footsteps no longer. He got his cellphone out of his pocket and flipped it open. He was met with someone trying to call him. He answered it and put the phone up to his ear. "'Yello." Someone talked on the other end. "Yeah, it's me. They're gettin' suspicious, Lou." More talking on the other end. "Really? Uh huh. No, the cops just came in here wantin' to talk to 'im. They went up to 'is apartment." More talking. "Okay. Will do." He closed the phone and set it on the desk.

* * *

"Oh my gosh!" Judy gasped, looking around the living room. The place was wrecked. Tables were tipped, glass was broken, papers were strewn everywhere, and to top it off, there were claw marks everywhere. On the lime green sofa that rested in the middle of the living room, on the walls, even on a big table that was lying on its side right behind the couch. "Mister Blancan?" Judy called out. But as she expected, she was met with no answer. "He's not here."

"Shyeah. And I've got a feeling he didn't leave willingly." Nick responded, pulling out a flashlight. They started walking around, looking everywhere for any evidence of the raccoon.

Judy went to another room and saw a scene even more horrific than the living room. There was a bed against the wall, the blankets she assumed were once on the bed ripped the shreds on the ground, along with the mattress itself. There were shards of ceramic lying on the ground near a nightstand that stood by the bed. Lying on its side by the ceramic was a pale-colored lampshade. A lamp must have fallen off of it and shattered. On the wall there was a picture of a raccoon and an older raccoon that seemed to be playing ball. That, too, was ripped. She stepped forward to get a better look then stopped. She stepped into something cold. Something wet. She looked down to see her foot in a puddle of blood. She quickly stepped back, leaving a stain in the shape of her paw on the tan carpet. Her stomach lurched.

"Nick!" She called shakily. He rushed into the room she was in and his eyes widened as he saw more claw marks everywhere. He looked to Judy, who had a foot up in the air, the bottom of it dark red. He looked at the carpet and saw the puddle of blood. It wasn't a large puddle, but it was blood. His snout crinkled up. "Oh god, I stepped in it.." Judy said, her nose twitching in disgust. He gave her a cloth and she wiped it off then watched as Nick leaned closer to it. "I think… it's blood." He stated the obvious fact. She rolled her eyes at him and frowned. What had happened to this poor raccoon?

"What do you think happened?" He asked her, reading her mind.

"I don't know… something bad." She grimaced, thinking. _There was obviously a struggle… I wonder if some of the other residents heard something..._

"I think we should go back and talk to that Diego guy. He seemed pretty shady." Nick said, thinking aloud. They started to head out until Nick looked back at the nightstand and saw something. He walked over to it and picked it up. A to-do list. He tilted his head in confusion. _Why isn't this thing in shreds?_ He pondered, looking it over. It read:

 **To-Do List**

 **Call Lenny**

 **Pay Rent**

 **Clean House**

 **Pick Up Groceries**

 **Take Care Of Things**

Nick reread it then showed it to Judy. "Hey Whiskers, lookie what I found." She read it then asked,

"Who's Lenny? What "Things" does he need to take care of?"

"I don't know, but I doubt "Lenny" or the "Things" are anything good." They left the apartment and started down the stairs to talk to Diego Dingo. When they reached the bottom, they walked down the hallway and to the front desk to find it empty.

"Dang-it!" Judy exclaimed, frustrated.

"I think you mean _Ding-It."_ Nick snickered, eyeing a sign that read the name of the complex, "Diego Dingo's Ding-Dong Digs". Judy stared icily at him then thought, _He must have known about Blancan… then high-tailed it out of here when the cops had come… maybe he knows where he is!_

She told Nick her thoughts then they both started scoping out the lobby. Judy looked at the magazines laid out by the chairs then heard a "Huh." from across the room. She turned to see Nick looking at a phone in his hands.

"Nick, get off your phone." She told him, agitated by the thought of him scrolling on his phone while she looked.

"No, come here!" He said, waving her over. She got up and walked over to where he was holding the phone, looking over it. "I found it on the desk, it must have been the Dingo's. Can you believe this? He has a flip-phone! It's not even touch-screen!" He pouted. "And he left the poor thing here all by itself. What a ding-dong." He said sadly, petting the phone like it was alive, then chuckled at his own joke.

Ignoring yet another one of his jokes, she looked at him in disbelief. It was just a phone! Did he care about _his_ phone as much as this one? She grinned evilly. This was important information. She could use this. "Do you think we could use the phone to find him?" She asked.

Nick thought over it. "Yes, I believe we could. We're just going to have to find someone really good with phones." He gave her a toothy grin. "And I know the perfect guy."


	4. Chapter 4

**Oh my goodness! I'm sorry this took so long, I just haven't had the time! Thank you all _so_ much for being so patient! Here is chapter 4! =)**

* * *

Judy raised an eyebrow as she looked at the orange van in front of her. On it was a heroic-looking picture of a male wolf holding a female wolf, with lightning clashing in the background.

She looked over at Nick who smirked at her and rapped his fist against the side of the van. One of the back doors of the van flung open and a deep voice called out, "What? What is it?!" Out jumped a small fennec fox wearing a black shirt with two red lines running down the front and green shorts. He looked at them and said, "Nick?" He narrowed his eyes. "What're you cops doin' 'round here?"

"Nice to see you too, Finnick. We need your help." Nick said plainly.

"With... ?" Finnick asked, lifting an eyebrow.

"We need you to get into this phone." He said, tossing him said phone.

The small fox looked it over, flipped it open and turned it on. The screen lit up and a password requirement popped up. "I can do this, easy." Finnick chuckled. "But what's in it for me?"

Nick tapped his chin then pulled a case that contained a cd out of his back pocket. He tapped it. "This," he smirked, showing it to Finnick, "Is what you get."

Finnick took the case, unsure of what to think until he read the front. His eyes widened and he exclaimed, "Wow, Nick, I didn't know that _you_ knew of my love for French rap!" On the case in big letters was the word _Lion._

Nick took it back. "Of course I know. I also know you'd do anything for it, so…" he grinned evilly.

Finnick frowned then said, "Deal. Follow me." He went back inside the van, and Nick and Judy followed.

Judy gaped at the inside of the van. The place was a pigsty. There were blankets and a pillow set up, obviously to substitute for a bed, but the rest of the van was mostly trash. Such as food wrappers, empty soda cans, and even just crumpled up pieces of paper. They started heading toward the front, but Finnick paused. "What kind of animal's phone is this?"

"A dingo's." Judy told him.

FInnick face-pawed. "You should have told me! Dingoes are ding-dongs. They always have the same password… we won't need to actually hack the phone after all."

He turned on the phone and put in the password. A little dinging sound played, and welcome was splayed across the screen. Judy gawked at him. "How did you know his password?"

"Well, dingoes are smart, but I've noticed they always use the same passwords…"

"You've 'noticed'?" Judy raised an eyebrow at him.

"Well hey, I know these things…" he muttered, looking back at the phone. "His password was Dingo123. I've also seen BingoDingo, Dingo321, Dingo00, DingoLing-"

"We get the point," Nick said, cutting him off.

Finnick handed him back the phone then grumbled, "There, I did your dirty work. Now give me my _Lion_ album."

"All in good time, pal, all in good time. Just one more thing." Nick said, looking at the phone. "Someone called him around the time we went to check out the apartment. We need you to trace it."

"Okay," Finnick responded, taking back the phone. He went up to the front of the van and they could hear typing.

"He's got a computer up there?" Judy asked, glancing at Nick.

"Yup, just let him work his magic."

A few minutes later, Finnick rejoined them in the back and held out the phone and a piece of paper that said the address of where the call had come from. _A printer, too?_ Judy thought to herself, bewildered.

She and Nick took the items, then Nick handed Finnick the _Lion_ album and said, "Here ya go, bud, enjoy your crazy music." He ruffled the fur on the smaller fox's head, causing Finnick to glare at him, but Judy and Nick were already heading out of the van before anything else happened.

"Bye Finnick, thank you!" Judy called out to him gratefully, but all she got in return was the back of the van door slamming shut. Her ears lowered.

"Ah, don't worry, Whiskers, it means he likes you." Nick chuckled, making her beam at him.

They got into the police cruiser and pulled out the piece of paper with the address on it. Looking it over, Nick muttered, "Now, about that dingo…"

* * *

Crunching could be heard as they pulled into the gravel driveway of a shabby-looking house. It was rather small, made of wood, and the roof of it looked like it was about ready to fall off. As for the color, it was a rusty red, and the roof was a light brown color. (Except for the places where the paint was peeling, of course.)

They got out of the car, very cautious, for this was a bad part of town. Their elephant tranquilizers were at the ready for whomever they may need to use them on. (Who doesn't have an elephant tranquilizer ready when going into a shady building?)

They walked to the front and Judy knocked on the door. "ZPD, open up!" When no one answered the door, she knocked again, repeating the phrase. When, still, no one opened the door, Judy backed up and kicked down the door. (You may think that a bunny wouldn't be able to forcefully break down a door, but with the strength in their little legs? Easy!)

She and nick entered the room, holding out their tranquilizers. They carefully looked around the room. It was obviously the kitchen, for even though it was dark, Judy could see the outlines of a table, counters, a fridge, and other things you would find in a kitchen. (Nick, however, could see everything very clearly, for he had excellent night vision!)

They walked into the next room and paused. It smelled bad, reminding them of Claud B. Alas's apartment. Neither of them breathed, yet they heard breathing. Neither of them moved, yet they heard movement. Nick looked around the room. There was a couch, a small tv, a coffee table, and maybe 3 or 4 animals lying behind the couch, trying to hide. He looked around and found the light switch, flicking it on. Judy, finally being able to see the scene, pointed her tranquilizer at the animals.

There were three of them. A raccoon, an opossum, and a dingo. They immediately recognized the dingo to be Diego Dingo, the owner of Diego Dingo's Ding-Dong Digs. Seeing as they had no weapons, Judy and Nick holstered their tranquilizers. Nick walked further into the room. "Diego Dingo?" He asked, looking at the dingo.

The animals all sat up, staring at the cops. "Y-Yes?" Diego asked, looking at the fox who had said his name. Nick walked forward until he was right in front of them, then squatted down, face to face.

"Why so nervous?" He asked, looking into their faces. "It's not like you have anything to be nervous about, right? We're just here to ask some questions."

"Then why did you break down the door?" The opossum asked, meeting Nick's gaze.

"Because you didn't answer, of course. How else were we going to get in?" He smirked, then looked back at Diego. "So, Mister Dingo, this is about Rocco Blancan, the raccoon that lives in one of your apartments." The dingo's eyes flashed with recognition, then… fear? "He wasn't there, and we found some disturbing things. But when we came back down to ask you if you knew anything, you had gone!"

"So... lemme get this straight. You came down to ask me some things, and when I wasn't there, you somehow knew I was here?"

"Oh, we're not that good. We didn't know you were here," Nick took out the phone and showed it to its owner, "But this did." He chuckled. "But anyway, back to Blancan. You didn't happen to… hear anything did you?"

"No."

"You didn't happen to… see anything, did you?"

"No."

Nick narrowed his eyes and motioned for Judy to come next to him. He placed the dingo's phone on the ground, out of Diego's reach, but in his view. Judy smiled as she realized what she was to do. She held her foot out over the phone, threatening to stomp on it, which would smash it to pieces. Diego's eyes widened.

"Lemme ask you again. Did you see or hear anything?"

"No," Judy raised her foot, about to crush the phone. "Wait!" Diego exclaimed at the last minute. "Blancan got a visitor last night. A jaguar. Didn't catch his name."

Judy and Nick's eyes widened as they looked at each other in recognition of what the dingo had just told them. A jaguar. Why, the only jaguar who had anything to do with this, that they knew of, was Lucas Sonaro, the jaguar who had been Claud B. Alas's YMCA friend. _If he had something to do with Blancan's disappearance, he might have something to do with Alas's! I guess we have four missing animal cases now…_ Judy thought to herself.

"Has anyone else been here today?" Judy asked, eyeing them suspiciously.

"No." the opossum said, returning her gaze.

"Not anyone? No lions, no tigers, no… jaguars?"

She caught a flash of confusion in the opossum's eyes before he said, "Nope."

"Okay. What are your names?" She asked the opossum and raccoon.

The opossum blinked then said, "Name's Levi Rufous."

"I'm Leonard Raton." The raccoon murmured, fiddling with his fingers.

Nick knit his brows then asked, "You don't happen to go by Lenny, do you?"

"Yeah, how'd you know?" Leonard asked, looking at Nick.

"Lucky guess. So, do you know Rocco Blancan, Mister Raton?" Nick asked, raising his eyebrow at the raccoon.

The dingo and the opossum were glaring at him, so Nick and Judy weren't surprised when Leonard finally responded, "Um… no."

"Okay, well, call us if you find anything else out." Judy said, and Nick handed each of them a slip of paper with their number on it. He winked when he handed it to the raccoon. With that, they walked out of the building and got into the car. It was already dark outside. Judy turned on her phone and looked at the time. 8:34 pm. They had been working on the case all day. She yawned. Her phone started vibrating in her paw, meaning someone was calling her. She answered the phone.

"Yes? This is Judy."

On the other end of the line, Clawhauser said, "Judy! They figured out what type of fur you found at the apartment."

She immediately put it on speaker-phone so she and Nick could both hear Clawhauser. "What type of fur was it?" She asked, excited to finally hear back about the evidence they had found while searching the missing animal's apartment.

They heard typing, meaning Clawhauser was probably typing something on his computer. When the typing ceased, Clawhauser gave them their answer. "It's opossum fur."


	5. Chapter 5

The next day, Nick and Judy got out of the car and stepped out onto the hot pavement. They looked around the parking lot, seeing numerous cars parked in front of the huge building. They had driven back to the YMCA to talk to Lucas Sonaro. Diego Dingo had said that Rocco Blancan, the missing raccoon, had been visited by a jaguar. Sure, it could have been any jaguar, but Lucas Sonaro knew Claud B. Alas, who knew Rocco Blancan, who was, _conveniently_ , missing. _One thing just ties to another, that ties to another, then another, and before you know it, we're back to where we started._ Judy thought, groaning inwardly.

Her mind lingered to the opossum fur they had found in the missing tiger's apartment. _It simply_ must _have been that opossum we met at the house where Diego Dingo was. I mean, the two places smelled the same amount of rancid. If not the opossum, Levi Rufous, then definitely some other one. They have an odd smell._ Judy was snapped out of her thoughts as something poked her.

"You coming, Fluff?" Nick cocked an eyebrow at her.

"Yeah, sorry, just… thinking…" she muttered, following her partner into the YMCA.

They walked up to the front desk where they found a hyena, looking at something on the computer in front of her. She looked up. "Yes, can I help you?"

"Hello, I'm Officer Hopps, this is Officer Wilde, we're here to speak with Mister Lucas Sonaro, is he here today?"

"Oh, yes, he's right down that hall," She pointed to a hallway that had several doors leading into different rooms. "Second door on the left."

They thanked the receptionist then walked down the hallway and through the door the hyena had pointed out. They walked inside to see a room filled with treadmills, ellipticals, and other various workout machines. On them were various animals trying to get a good exercise. They spotted the jaguar they were looking for in the far corner of the room, jogging on an elevated treadmill.

They walked over to him and said, "Mister Sonaro?"

Startled, the jaguar looked up and saw Nick and Judy staring at him. He stopped the treadmill and sat down, panting. "Yeah?"

"Hi, us again. The cops investigating your friend's disappearance. Just… thought we would ask you, how _did_ you get Rocco Blancan's name, anyway? You know, the raccoon you know so much about." Nick asked him suspiciously.

Lucas looked up at them in surprise. "What do you mean? I don't even know the guy! Claud told me about him."

"If you don't know the guy, then why did you visit him two nights ago?" Judy asked, cutting in.

His eyes flashed with fear, telling the cops all they needed to know, but he quickly tried to cover his mistake by saying, "What do you mean? I never went to his apartment."

"Ah, but we never said anything about his apartment. In fact, the only way you would know about his apartment would be if you had been there… or at least knew the guy." Nick smirked, having trapped the jaguar. "Now, tell us _why_ you were there."

Lucas sighed, having been defeated. "Okay. The truth is… I honestly did go there to check on him. He is my pal, through Claud, of course. We hang out sometimes and when he didn't answer my texts or pick up the phone when I called him, I thought something was wrong. I was right, because when I got there the place was a mess and he wasn't there. But… someone was. He jumped out one of the windows before I could do anything, which is crazy, we were like 3 stories up! I couldn't exactly see him clearly, but he looked like a giant rat…"

"Is that all?" Judy asked, taking notes.

"Yeah."

"Alright, thank you sir."

They left the YMCA and got back in the car to ponder over what they had found. _A giant rat…_ Judy thought, tapping her carrot pen against her chin. _Opossums are sort of like giant rats… right? What if it was Levi Rufous who was in the apartment?!_

She relayed her thoughts to Nick, who half-listened to her, sitting slouched down in the police car, playing on his phone. When she suggested they go find and question Rufous, all she got in reply was, "Yeah, sounds good.", hinting he wasn't really listening. She stopped and looked over at his phone. He had been playing _Pandas vs. Zebras 2_ , a popular game where the player had to "plant" pandas around a patch of bamboo that needed to be defended from oncoming zebras. (Of course, the main point of the game was occasionally ruined by the pandas trying to eat the bamboo.)

"Nick!" She scolded him, exasperated by the phone addict sitting next to her. She took the phone and, before he had time to react, locked it in the glove compartment.

"Hey!" He hollered, trying to open the glove compartment, but to no avail. She had locked it up tight and there was no opening it without the key, which she had just used to start the car. He wouldn't be able to get his phone until she took the keys out. Nick sat with his arms crossed, pouting, while Judy started driving towards the house they had searched just yesterday. She, of course, planned to take her time while driving.

* * *

As they drove into the familiar driveway of the shady-looking house, they could tell that at least _someone_ was there by the lights shining through the open windows. They got out of their car, their usual elephant tranquilizers at the ready. They didn't have to use them last time, but this time, with something against the opossum, they might need the weapons.

They walked up to the front of the house, where they knocked on the door. This time, someone answered it. It was the raccoon, Leonard Raton. Remembering his name, Judy greeted him, "Hello Mister Raton. Is mister Rufous here?" She smiled sweetly.

Leonard, who had already begun to look sweaty, said, "Ah… gee… y'know, you just missed him…"

"Is anyone else here?" Judy insisted, her nose twitching.

"No, it's just me."

"Okay then, mind if we come in?" Nick asked, looking at Leonard.

"S-Sure." The raccoon stammered, opening the door for the cops to come inside. They walked into the kitchen, except actually seeing it this time, for the lights were on. They followed Leonard as he walked into the living room, where they all sat down on the small couch.

"So, what can I do for you, officers?" He asked, fiddling his fingers. He was obviously nervous already.

"Oh, we just wanted to know more about Rocco Blancan. Seeing as you already know him, we figured we'd come to you." Nick said casually, looking straight into the raccoon's face.

Leonard's eyes widened and he looked at the cops. He looked around suspiciously then leaned in and said, "Not here. It isn't safe."

The cops looked at eachother, and Nick smirked at the raccoon, "We could always interrogate you at the station, you know, if it would make you feel any safer."

Leonard went pale and his eyes got bigger. "Fine. I do know Rocco. He's my cousin. He got involved in some bad stuff, and he dragged me into it. I'm stuck living here with these two psychopaths, and I'm pretty sure they did something with Rocco. Also whoever it is that you're looking for, the tiger, they got him too."

"What did they do to them?" Judy asked.

"I dunno, but it sure wasn't something good. The whole gang is in on it, they do whatever our leader says to do."

"What? Who? Who is your leader?" Just as Judy said this, a pounding could be heard on the front door.

"Oh no, I've said too much. He's back. They're gonna kill me! You gotta help me!" He pleaded, looking up at the cops. Before they could respond, they could hear the door swing open, and footsteps walk in. The animal attached to the feet walked into the living room. In walked Levi Rufous, the opossum they were looking for.

"What're they doing here?" Diego asked, glowering at the cops in the room.

"T-They had some questions…" Leonard murmured, unable to meet his eyes. He was fidgeting with his paws again.

"Did they, now?" Levi Rufous asked as he looked at them. Venom could be heard in his voice. "And what did they want to know?"

"What happened to Rocco Blancan…" Leonard responded.

"And what did he tell you?" Levi asked the cops dryly.

"Nothing that would help our case. But maybe you can shine some light on the situation, Mister Rufous, seeing as you were at his apartment." Nick said coolly, looking straight into the opossum's beady eyes.

"How did you…" he started, his voice barely a whisper. "What makes you think that?" He said, trying to quickly cover up his mistake.

Judy, however, could hear every word he said, because of her amazing hearing, of course. "Mister Rufous, please don't lie to us, we really don't wanna do this the hard way," Judy sighed, watching as the opossum just stood there, his mouth agape.

Calming down, Levi looked at them smugly. "You ain't got nothing against me."

"Ooh… actually, we've got a fur sample, an eye witness report, _and_ the fact that, no offense, the place smelled exactly like you do now." Judy simpered at him.

"Mister Rufous, you are under arrest for breaking and entering, kidnapping, and, quite possibly, attempted murder." Judy said, her face grim. Nick handcuffed him and read him his rights. They walked him to the car and locked him in the backseat. After some struggle, and a bit of language from the opossum, they then returned inside to talk to Leonard Raton.

"So, now that that's all taken care of, you still haven't told us who's behind all this." Nick said, raising an eyebrow at Leonard.

"I-If I tell you… they'll kill me!" Levi whimpered.

"We could put you under protective custody until this whole ordeal is over," Judy suggested, looking at him sympathetically.

Levi sniffed. "Okay… truth be told, I haven't actually met or talked to the boss. Just the others have. But I have overheard their phone conversations. I heard them talking to Lucas, they called him Lou sometimes. I asked Diego about him one day and he said he was a force to be reckoned with. 'Long claws and sharp fangs', he said. That's all I really found out about him. I didn't learn anything about the operation they were running, which they kept me out of."

Judy and Nick's eyes widened as they stared at eachother, jaws hanging ajar. _Lucas… could it be Lucas Sonaro? The jaguar that seems to tie into_ all _of this? It's gotta be!_ Judy thought to herself.

They got back in the car and called Chief Bogo to send another cop to come and pick up Leonard, they couldn't risk driving him _and_ Levi to the station at the same time. Something might happen while they were driving. They planned to take the sniveling opossum back, where he would be interrogated by one of the more experienced officers. Once they found out all the could about the whole operation, he would be put behind bars. Meanwhile, Nick and Judy were going to find their jaguar.


	6. Chapter 6

**I just want to thank you all so much for all the positive reviews! They make me really happy, I appreciate it, you guys! =) With that said, here is the next chapter!**

* * *

Having nothing else to go on, the dexterous duo were forced to look for Lucas Sonaro at the YMCA. This would be their third time there in the last two days. For Nick, who wasn't big on exercise, visiting the place _again_ seemed dreadful. Judy, however, was excited to return and find their suspect. As they walked through the front doors of the building, they recognized the receptionist as the deer they had met the first time going here.

They walked up and Judy greeted her, "Hi again, any chance Lucas Sonaro is here again today?"

The deer looked up from her work and, upon recognizing the two officers, smiled. "Hello. I'm afraid Mister Sonaro hasn't come today, which is a big surprise."

"Oh, well is there anyone here who works out with him, or knows him well?" Judy asked, gazing around the YMCA.

"Hmm… Oh! Yes, there is," she pointed over to a large tan-ish cat with tufted ears, a caracal, who was on an elliptical. "That's Calypso Seren. I believe she's friends with him."

They thanked the deer then headed off to talk to the caracal. She had been walking in place on the machine, but when she saw them approach her, she stopped and looked at them. "Yeah?" She growled, glaring at them.

Judy blinked. Nick cocked an eyebrow at the angry big cat in front of him and said, "Woah, there, Princess, don't get your tail in a twist, we just wanted to ask you a question."

Calypso's ear twitched and she muttered, "Well? What?"

"Do you know Lucas Sonaro?" Judy asked, peering at Calypso's face to see if she could catch a reaction.

Calypso's ears perked as she heard the name and her demeanor changed. "Y-Yeah! I know Lucas. W-Why?" She stammered.

Nick narrowed his eyes at her. "We need to find him. Any idea where he might be?"

"Umm… no."

"Know anyone who would know?"

"...No…"

"Alright, well tell us if you see him. Thank you for your time." He handed her a slip of paper with the station's number and address on it. They left the YMCA and got in the cruiser.

"So… now what, Whiskers?" Nick asked, peering at his partner. He checked the time and said, "It's already twelve thirty."

She glanced at him and started the car. "Well, there's only one thing to do about that, then."

* * *

Still a bit discouraged by the lack of a lead, Nick and Judy drove towards a nearby restaurant, (And might I mention one of their favorite places to eat) Dairy Diner. The place was run by a family of dairy cows, but, aside from the staff, was not loyal to its alliterative title. The place sold a variety of food, ranging from cicada burgers and grasshopper shakes for the predators to salads and fruit parfaits for the prey.

They parked in the busy lot outside the diner and walked into the building. Themed like a retro diner, the room was filled with bright red booths and sparkling silver tables. The place was hopping, (No pun intended) the clicking and clacking of hooves against the black and white tiles rang throughout the diner, and cheery talking and laughing was going on at each booth. They found a small table with two chairs the same color as the booths and sat down. While looking at their menu, a cow wearing a white uniform and apron came up and took their order.

Judy had her elbow propped up against the table, her head resting on it. Bored during the wait for her lunch, she looked at Nick, who was on his phone as usual. "Whatcha doing?"

Without looking up from his phone, he responded, "On Tweeter."

She frowned, and looked around the dinner. Her ears perked when her eyes landed on something familiar. A jaguar. Lucas Sonaro. Eating cricket chips by himself at a booth not too far from where they were. She poked nick. "Nick." she whispered.

Eyes glued to his phone, he responded, "I'm sure it'll be ready soon, Cottontail, just be patient."

She gave him a dirty look. "No, look." She discreetly nodded her head in the direction of Lucas Sonaro.

He looked over to where she was hinting and his eyes widened. "That's-"

She stopped him and motioned for him to get up. They walked over to the table and the jaguar looked up at them. "Um… can I help you," he noticed their uniforms. "Officers?"

"Don't play dumb, Lucas." Nick knit his eyebrows together.

"H-How did you know my name?" The jaguar stammered, puzzled.

"What do you mean, 'how do you know my name'? We've met you twice before." Judy said, noting the look of genuine confusion in the jaguar's eyes. "You _are_ Lucas Sonaro, right?"

"Yes…"

"We talked to you at the YMCA. Do you remember that?"

"No… oh! You mean Lucas."

"Aren't you Lucas?" Judy raised her eyebrow at him.

"Oh, yes, I'm Luke. I have a brother. He's Lucas."

"Oh… well where is your brother?"

"He's probably at his house. Why…?"

"We just need to talk to him. Can you give us his address?" Judy asked, getting out a pen and a notepad.

After getting the address and thanking Luke, Nick and Judy returned to their table, where a delicious meal was waiting.

* * *

Once they had finished their food, the cops got in their car and drove to the address listed on the notepad. It was a small house, smaller than the one they had found Diego and the others in, but not as worn down. It was a peach color with a brown roof, and on the front porch there were a couple of lawn chairs set out by a small table.

They walked up to the porch and rang the doorbell. It could be heard ringing on the other side, but nothing else. No one answered. They tried again. No answer. They got out their tranquilizers. Judy kicked down the door and they stepped inside. All the lights were off and they ventured inside, Nick at the lead. "Hello?" Judy called out. "Mister Sonaro?" Again, no answer.

Nick leading, they walked into the next room, the living room, Judy occasionally bumping into things until Nick found the light switch. Still exploring the house, they heard a thump. Then another. A door opening and closing. They turned off the lights and ducked behind the couch. Footsteps. The light turned on. The room was silent. They shut their eyes in anticipation. Judy and Nick peered over the sofa. On the carpet were muddy footprints that led… behind the couch? That was the _last_ thing they saw, however, before _*WHAM*!_ Darkness.


	7. Chapter 7

"Rise and shine!" Judy heard an unfamiliar voice call out. She felt something warm next to her. Cold, she snuggled closer to the source of heat. She felt arms wrap around her. She opened her eyes and looked up to see Nick, who was holding her. He looked scared.

"Nick?" She murmured, half asleep.

He looked around, worried. "Yeeeeeeah…. Carrots, it's me. Um, might wanna wake up now."

She sat up and yawned, then looked at Nick. His ears were pinned down and his fur stood straight up. She looked around at her were lying on a stone floor, in a small cage. Off to the side, two bowls, one with water and one with food, were set out for them. Other than that, the cage was empty.

She looked towards where she had heard the first voice. A large opossum wearing black jeans and a wifebeater stood right on the other side of the cage.

He smirked at her. "'Bout time Sleeping Beauty here woke up, don'tcha think?" He asked, looking at Nick.

He frowned at the opossum and asked, "What are we doing here? What do you want from us?"

"Well, it's really what does my _boss_ want from you, but I'll leave that to your imaginations," He chuckled. "And as for what _you're_ doing _here_ , I would think you two were snuggling." He winked at them, and Judy started to blush.

Before she could say anything, another face appeared on the other side of the cage. It was the slender snout of a badger, wearing an outfit quite like the opossum's. "Quit conversing with the captives!" the unfriendly voice hissed. "The boss wants to see you."

Judy knit her eyebrows. "Captives. Why are we captives? What's going on?"

The opossum just frowned and said, "Keep an eye on them." To the badger, then walked down a hallway.

The cage was in a small, dark room with one creaky light hanging from the top. Light could also be seen down the hallway the opossum had just walked through. The badger, obviously not pleased to have been given guard duty, sat down and leaned against the metal bars of the cage.

"So…" Judy started, "Who are you?"

The badger just snorted and said nothing. The room was quiet for a bit until judy heard a growling noise. She jumped, startled by the sound. She realized it was her own stomach growling. Embarrassed, she walked over to the food bowl to see what it had to offer. She crinkled her nose in disgust when she saw the contents. Something mushy that _might_ have been oatmeal. "Um… excuse me? What is this?" She asked the badger, who had started playing on his phone.

"Just eat it," he growled, annoyed. "It's food."

She looked back at it and shivered. Curious about what she was looking at, Nick crawled over to the bowl and looked inside. "Yeesh. No wonder. I'd rather die of starvation than die of food poisoning." He chuckled, sitting back down.

Still very hungry, Judy scooped a bit of it onto her finger and plopped it into her mouth. Her eyes bulged as she tasted the repulsive slop. She spit it back out and started wiping her tongue with her paws. "It was as bad at it looked. It was as bad as it looked."

Nick snickered at her and was about to insult her reputation when they heard the sound of claws against tiles. The opossum was coming back. They could see his face as he walked up to the cage and said, "Alright. Time to go. Both of you."

The badger got up and started unlocking the door. The opossum went in and grabbed both of their arms. "Now, we don't gotta do dis the hard way. Either of you try tah run, we'll have to resort to it."

They did what he said, got up, and began walking toward the hallway, each having one of their arms pulled by the opossum. The hallway was very long. The floor was sticky and the lighting was terrible. They walked through low-hanging spiderwebs more than once, and the owners of these homes were not happy.

When they finally got to their supposed destination, a rusty metal door, the badger opened it and the opossum, Nick, and Judy all stepped inside. The badger followed and closed the door.

The room they walked into seemed much cozier than the previous cage and hallway. It was a small room, the floor was a dark wood instead of tile, and the walls were painted a light brown. There was a large red and yellow rug in the middle of the room, and on the wall opposite the door, there was a large wooden desk with a computer resting on it. Facing them was a large leather armchair. Seated in the chair was a raccoon. Leonard Raton.

He grinned at them, revealing a mixture of white and golden teeth. "Welcome to my office."

* * *

 **I _know_ I could have made this longer, I've just been busy and wanted to get a chapter out. Thanks for your understanding and I hope you're enjoying the story! ^-^**


	8. Chapter 8

Nick and Judy stared in shock. The timid raccoon? _He's_ their boss? Judy's eyes widened. "Leonard Raton?"

"Yes, that's me." he grinned smugly.

"How… What…" Judy was at a loss for words. Nick just stood there, dazed.

"Yes, well, this is my office." he made a sweeping gesture. "And they," he said, pointing to the opossum and the badger, "Are part of my gang."

The opossum gave them a toothy smile and the badger grunted. Judy looked around the "office". There was the desk and chair, of course, but Judy also notice a small fridge and a rack of coats. Except the coats looked… off.

"What are those?" she asked, pointing to the rack.

The opossum and badger both smiled this time, and Leonard chuckled. "Well, why don't you go see for yourselves?"

Judy knit her brow. Nick grabbed her hand and squeezed. They both went to look at the coats. They seemed to be regular faux fur coats. She reached her hand out to feel one. It felt especially soft. She examined the coat. It was gray, white and black, like the fur of a raccoon. Like the fur of Leonard Raton. And his cousin… Rocco Blancan. Judy stopped dead and her stomach lurched. She looked over to Nick, who looked as aghast as Judy felt.

She looked back to the others, who were all smirking at her. "Is-... are they-… real?" she stammered. The silence in the room answered her question. "Why would you… do this?"

Leonard got out of his chair and started walking towards her slowly, hands clasped behind his back. "Well, dear, the thing is, my own _cousin_ crossed me. I had to show who was boss. And, sadly, that meant adding him to my collection. As for the rest of them," he gestured towards the rack and others behind it, "They're just furry fools who got in the way."

"But… what do you get out of all this?"

"See, hon, people will pay a pretty penny for stuff like this. Especially the hairless kinda sort." The raccoon continued, grinning.

Nick narrowed his eyes at each nickname.

"But… it's just so macabre! I mean, how would you skin a raccoon?!"

"The same way we're going to skin you." he chuckled darkly and Judy and Nick were both met with a sudden familiar darkness.

* * *

 **Vocabulary Time with Lenny the Bear! ʕ•ᴥ•ʔ**

 **Timid - showing a lack of courage or confidence; easily frightened ← This is how Lenny the Bear ʕ•ᴥ•ʔ feels around lady bears! ◉_◉**

 **Faux - made in imitation (made to copy another thing) ← Lenny the Bear ʕ•ᴥ•ʔ says, "The best way to remember the word faux is to think of 'fake'!"**

 **Macabre - disturbing and horrifying because of involvement with or depiction of death and injury ← Lenny the Bear ʕ•ᴥ•ʔ says this is why he wasn't apart of Barney!**

 **Lenny the Bear ʕ•ᴥ•ʔ says, "Thank you so much for being with us during 'Vocabulary Time with Lenny the Bear! ʕ•ᴥ•ʔ' See you next time, and have a** _ **beary**_ **good day!"**

* * *

 **Sorry, I just had to. -Noi**


	9. Chapter 9

Judy blinked her eyes open. She was met with the blaze of a ceiling light right above her. She squinted, and once she was used to it, sat up. Or at least, tried to. She was strapped down. She looked down at herself. She was strapped down to a metal table. She looked around the room. She met the eyes of Nick, who was also strapped down to a similar table.

She was about to say something to him when the room was filled with the sound of someone laughing. She leaned her head up as best as she could, and looked into the eyes of Leonard Raton, the crime boss. He stared directly at her and chuckled, "Ah, so now you're both awake."

"Where are we?" she burst out. "What are you doing, Leonard?"

His smile faded and his expression hardened. He glared at her and walked over to her table. He slapped her across the cheek. "That's Mister Raton to you, little bunny." he snarled.

She could hear the low growl coming from across the room at Nick's Table.

Judy had the urge to rub her red cheek but could not. She instead said, "Okay, 'Mister Raton', I thought you were in protective custody!"

"That's better," he grinned. "Also, I _was_ in protective custody, you're right. But, let's just say I know how to get out of things."He winked at her, and with that, he walked over to the gray concrete wall opposite the tables and exited through a big metal door. Judy cringed as she heard the jingle of keys and a lock in the door being turned. Footsteps, down the hallway. Then silence.

Nick looked over to her and asked softly, "Are you alright?"

She looked at her partner and saw fear in his eyes. To be truthful, her cheek was red, and was stinging like the place down below, but for him, she said, "Oh, I'm fine. He didn't hit me that hard."

"Didn't sound like it…" he muttered, lowering his eyes.

After a few minutes of silence, "We're obviously in the same place as before," she started, "But where do you think this place is?"

Nick took a few seconds to think then responded, "I think-I think we might be in the basement of somewhere. Maybe that old house we found everyone in."

He had a good point. All signs did lead to there. This place was just so… big. Judy had a feeling that wasn't it. She relayed her thoughts to Nick, who nodded and said things like "Good point." and, "Maybe."

Judy sighed and said, "Wherever we are," she paused to take a look around the eerie room with poor lighting, "We're in for the long haul."

It had been days. Weeks, maybe! Until Judy and Nick heard the familiar sound of footsteps coming down the hallway towards the room they were in. It was probably only hours, but time sure is different when you're strapped down to a table in who-knows-where.

The door opened and in walked Diego Dingo, the Dingo who ran the apartment complex and had been found at the house with the others. Behind him came the boss, Leonard Raton, the opossum, Levi Rufous, and the opossum they had met by the cage.

Judy strained to look up at them, but was unable to. Nick, however, looked up quickly and glared at them. "What are you doing to us?" he growled.

Diego, who was holding a clipboard, responded "Well, you saw for yourself, didn't you?" he glanced over to Leonard Raton, who nodded his head.

Judy and Nick glanced at each other, both of their eyes widening in fear.

Seeing their shared look, Leonard, who was holding a drink, chuckled, "Let's just get it over with. We aren't cruel. It won't take long."

"Not cruel? You kidnap innocent mammals and _skin_ them alive! Just for money!" Nick growled, more angry than scared.

Levi just rolled his eyes and muttered, "We don't _have_ to be quick, you know,"

Diego rolled his eyes and said, "Shut up," he looked from Nick to Judy and grinned, "So, who's first?"

"How about none of us?" Judy asked quietly. "I mean, who would buy coats this small? In fact, who would need _or_ want coats made of actual fur?"

Leonard grinned his golden smile. "You'd be surprised at how many rhinos, elephants, hippos, and the such buy them. And at our prices." he paused to take a sip from his drink, "So anyway, let's see… Shall we do eenie meenie miny mo?"

"Actually…" Levi started, tapping his chin, " He looked at both of them, Judy, whose eyes were wide with fear, and Nick, who had a worried expression while he looked at the bunny next to him. He gave them a sinister smile and pointed to Judy. "She goes first."


	10. Chapter 10

**Okay, I _know_ I have been slacking lately with all the short chapters, and I _know_ that it's been a while since the last update, but gimme a break here. Summer is rolling around the corner and I've been _busy_. (Yeah, yeah, I know, what a surprise I have other stuff going on in my life, har, har, har) But that's not the point. The point is, it's the end of the year and I have a lot of stuff going on, but I try my best to update as much as I can. So anyway, I'll stop blabbering and please enjoy the _longer_ chapter. ~(˘▾˘~)**

* * *

Judy cried out as she saw Levi pull out a sharp knife from a countertop somewhere across the room. He walked over to her table, knife glistening under the dim light.

Judy panicked and started squirming under the ropes. Nick growled from his table and started thrashing at the rope holding him down. Everyone in the room dashed to hold him down. Judy couldn't hear the snarling over the sound of her pounding heart. She quickly started to break free of her ropes.

She began gnawing on the rope holding down her arms and chest. Once free, the legs. She sprang up from the table and, remembering her gun, shot each animal with a tranquilizer dart.

She darted over to where Nick lay on the table, writhing under the force holding him down. Except. Except. Except he was wearing a muzzle. They muzzled him. He started whimpering, whining, then wailing, frantically trying to break free of the ropes and, most of all, the muzzle.

"Oh, Nick…" Judy murmured as she started trying to untie the ropes. Then, having better thought through it, worked on the muzzle. He was growling as she tried to undo the muzzle, but it was held together at the back of his head, and he wouldn't stay still long enough.

Pounding could be heard from the hallway. Footsteps. Large ones. Nick was making too much noise. Without thinking, she shot him with her dart gun, silencing his wails. She stood as still as she could. The footsteps came closer, and closer, then stopped at the door. Judy held her breath. The footsteps continued. She exhaled then looked back at Nick, who was still asleep.

She untied his ropes and turned him on his side. She picked at the latch that held the muzzle together which, to her dismay, she couldn't undo. She grabbed it and started pulling it, trying to do anything to get it off of his head. She whimpered and sat down next to his table.

What was she supposed to do? Even if she did get it off, she couldn't carry or drag Nick. There were obviously other guards outside of the room. And what about when the boss and his minions woke up? She sighed and buried her face in her paws. They were going to die that day. There was no way out of- _Wait!_

Judy put the tranquilizer on its holster and pulled out a radio. How could she forget? She turned it on and sent out a message to Clawhauser, saying " _CLAWHAUSER! PUT DOWN YOUR DONUT AND ANSWER ME!"_ Someone did pick up the transmitter, but it wasn't who she expected.

Chief Bogo's booming voice called out, _"Hopps! This better be good!"_

 _"Good? THIS IS NOT GOOD! Me-and-Nick-were-kidnapped-by-this-raccoon-guy-named-Leonard-Raton-and-his-minions-and-we-are-currently-being-held-hostage-in-WHO-KNOWS-WHERE-and-Nick-got-darted-and-we-figured-out-what-happened-to-the-missing-mammals-and-and-and-WE ALMOST DIED, CHIEF!"_ she said, gasping for breath.

 _"Hang on a sec, Hopps. I'm going to pretend I know everything you just said, and ask if you have_ any _idea where you might be."_

 _"Uh, uh"_ she babbled, trying to think, _"OH! The house Nick and I investigated! I think we might be in the basement there!"_

She gave him the address and he said, _"Okay, we're on our way. Hang in there, Judy."_ and with that, the room was filled with silence once again.

She got up and dragged the sleeping bodies of Levi, Leonard, and Diego into a nearby closet, then locked the door, making sure they didn't get out.

Judy walked over to Nick, who still had his muzzle on, and turned him back on his side. She picked at the latch, more carefully this time, but still couldn't undo it. _Screw it,_ she thought to herself, becoming frustrated. She grabbed the whole thing with her paws and pulled. After at least 30 seconds of pulling, the darn thing came off.

Judy let out a sigh of relief and threw the muzzle as far as she could across the room. It clattered onto the ground, and she turned back to Nick.

Judy got up on the big table with him, and rested her chin on her chest. She could feel the steady motions of his breathing, and she matched her breaths to his. "Hang in there, Nick," she said, repeating Chief Bogo. "Hang in there." her eyes closed and she dozed off.

* * *

Judy was awoken by three things- someone shaking her, someone pounding against a wall, and a far off loud popping noise. The shaking came from her partner, Nick. He was staring at her with wide eyes. Judy sat up, still on the table with Nick, and looked up at him,

"What is going _on_?!" he asked, looking around the room. His eyes locked on the closet. It was shaking, and that was where the pounding was coming from.

"Uh, uh… I locked them in there." Judy said, looking from Nick to the closet. "C'mon. We gotta get out of here."

She grabbed his arm and jumped off the table, pulling him with her. She took her gun out of its holster and held it out in front of her, ready for action. "Nick," she said, looking at her partner, who just stood there, "Get your tranquilizer gun out."

"Ooh, um..." he said, patting his holster, "I don't have it."

Judy groaned and motioned towards the door. "Just come on."

They left the room and were immediately met with the sound of loud popping and booming. Gunshots. They glanced at eachother and hurried down the hallway toward the noise, one tranquilizer gun held at the ready.

They turned the corner and saw Officer Wolford, a gray timber wolf, and Officer Del gato, a tan-colored cougar, fighting against two large rhinos. And they were losing. Wolford was lying on the ground, blood oozing out of his mouth, his gun still held out in front of him, while officer Del gato stood on one leg, his other leg bent in a bad way.

Nick ran over to help the other officers. Judy shot at one of the rhinos, darting him in the back of his neck. The other rhino turned to her and roared, his eyes blazing. He charged right at her. She dodged to the right, missing his sharp horn by mere inches.

He turned around, enraged. He got ready to charge, she got ready to hop out of the way, but neither happened. The rhino stopped roaring. A gunshot went off. Judy screamed and fell onto the ground. The blue cloth of her uniform was stained with red. She had been shot in the leg.

She looked up, tears in her eyes, to see Leonard Raton. The boss. The murderer. The opossum holding a gun pointed right at her.

He grinned his evil yellow grin and pointed the gun at Nick, who had gotten up from his squatted position next to the other officers.

"Don't. Move." Leonard sneered, shifting the gun in his hand. "You get to watch your girlfriend die a slow, painful death."

Nick looked too furious to even acknowledge the fact that Leonard had just called Judy his girlfriend.

Judy shifted a little, and let out a small groan.

Leonard backed up a little so he could look at Nick and Judy at the same time. He nodded to the rhino, "Go check on Lina." The rhino then left the room and shut the door behind him.

"Who's Lina?" Nick asked, looking at Leonard, his eyes still full of rage.

"No one. Now, here's how it's gonna go down. You," he said, eyeing Officer Wolford and Del gato, "Are going to git ovah here and hold 'im down." he nodded to Nick.

They did what he said, Del gato having some trouble with his right foot, and held Nick back.

"I can't believe you two!" Nick roared, struggling to get out of the grasps of his fellow officers. "You cowards!"

Leonard chuckled and turned back to Judy, who was still on the floor, and pointed his gun at her. "As for you," he chuckled, cocking the gun, "You will just be a bit of fun."

He shot the gun and hit her in the arm, causing her to yelp in pain. Tears filled her eyes again, but she blinked them away. She wouldn't let them see that they get to her.

Leonard turned back to Nick and smiled at him.

Nick's teeth were bared, his eyes on fire, and was struggling with all his might to get away from Wolford and Del gato.

"Judy!" he cried, then murmured, "Judy. Hang in there."

"Oh, but you see, she just _can't_ hang in there." he chuckled darkly, and pointed the gun back at Judy.

A shot was fired. But it was not at Judy. Leonard toppled over onto the floor and shouts rang out through the air. But to Judy, everything was ringing. Her vision was clouded by dark spots, and her whole body was numb. She felt arms wrap around her, then fell unconscious.


	11. Chapter 11

**Phew! Well, that took forever, right? Yeah... heh, sorry that took so long. I... I don't really have an excuse. (This time) *AHEM* Anyway, uh, here you go!**

* * *

This time, Judy was not woken up by someone shaking her. Nor Pounding. Nor Popping. No, this time it was the screeching of a rickety metal cart being rolled down a hallway just outside of the room she was in.

She opened her eyes. The room she was in. It was a bright white room, with a ceiling fan, a few chairs, a heart monitor, and the white-clothed bed she lay in.

The door to the room opened, and a female red panda wearing a white uniform walked in, staring at a clipboard she held in her paws. She looked up, and was surprised to see Judy sitting there, awake.

"Oh good!" she said cheerfully, "You're awake! How are you feeling?"

Judy blinked and responded, "I've got a bit of a headache, but… am I in a hospital?"

The red panda looked confused for a moment then said, "Oh! Yes! Ahem. You were brought to the emergency room by some of your fellow officers last night."

"Oh."

"Hm. Well, you might feel a bit dizzy. It's just the antibiotics."

"Yeah…" she said, looking around the room, a bit dazed.

"Okay, I'm go-"

The nurse was cut off as the door burst open and a voice called out, "Sir! You can't just go in there!"

But the "sir" did anyway. In walked a red fox wearing the usual green hawaiian shirt, loose tie and khakis combo. Nick. He looked around the room, and his eyes stopped on Judy.

"Judy!" he cried, grinning. He ran to her bedside and checked her over. "Are you okay?! I was so worried!" He turned to the nurse. "Is she okay?!"

The nurse chuckled and said, "She's fine, Mister Wilde. And Ralph was right. You can't just come barging in here like that. She needs her rest."

His smile faded, and he said, "Right. I'm sorry, I just wanted to make sure she was okay…" he turned back to Judy and smiled. "Get some rest."

The nurse ushered him out and whispered, "Goodnight." She turned off the lights and closed the door behind her as she left.

 _Night? Already? I just woke up!_ She yawned. _I'm not even that…_ She yawned again. _Tired…_ Her thoughts were interrupted with the coming of sleep.

Judy yawned as she sat up in her hospital bed. It had been a week since "the incident." She smacked her lips and looked around. She felt great. Her arm and leg were still wrapped in bandages, but they didn't hurt like they did a week ago.

She looked around the room. Her eyes fixed on the table beside her bed. On it were cards and flowers from her fellow officers and a big balloon that had "Get Well Soon!" printed on it in a fancy font.

"Enjoying the scenery, eh?"

Her head snapped back to the direction of the voice. Nick stood there in his police uniform, his usual smirk plastered on his face.

"Yeah… it's just so nice of everyone! I mean, look at that!" she beamed, pointing to the big balloon.

"Well, I have something for you too."

She looked back at him, confused. "You already gave me something."

"I know, but this is even better. I bring you the gift of… FREEDOM!" he whooped, waving his hands around.

"I finally get to leave this prison?" she chuckled.

"Yup! Just as soon as I sign these 1,000 papers…" he sighed.

"You? Shouldn't I be signing those?"

"Well, I am your emergency contact/best friend/the one who checked you in here, plus you shouldn't have to with your arm like that. So get dressed, and I'll be out in the lobby working on…" he waved the papers around. "This."

He turned to leave then stopped and said, "Also… Chief Bogo is in the lobby too. He wants to talk to us."

Once Judy had gotten dressed, she left her room and walked down the tile hallway and out into the main lobby. Most of the chairs were filled with mammals, but she saw Nick sitting in the corner, filling out papers, and Chief Bogo right by him, reading a Thyme magazine.

She walked over to them and said, "Hey. Are we ready to go?"

They both looked up and Nick said, "Not yet. I'm almost done."

Nick went back to the papers and Chief Bogo said, "Officer Hopps. I, um…" he rubbed the back of his neck. "Good… good job out there. Both of you. We- I should have been there. No one should have been hurt."

Nick looked up and Judy said, "No. Chief Bogo, it- it wasn't your fault. You came as fast as you could. It was foolish of us to go into Lucas Sonaro's house without any backup."

"Yeah," Nick said, backing up Judy. "There was nothing _anyone_ could have done. As soon as you and everyone else showed up, everything was fine. Plus, look. We're all good. Don't beat yourself up over it."

"Hm." Chief Bogo grunted. "Well... um… anyway… ahem. We got all of the killers locked up in jail. We found _all_ of the missing mammals held hostage in that hideout. Claud B. Alas, Elizabeth Manecala, Banana K. Inning, and a bear who was unlucky enough to be out on vacation at the time. No one knew he had been taken."

"That's good, that's good," Judy said, thinking to herself. "Oh! I mean, horrible, but… good."

"Done!" Nick cried out. "Now let's get out of here."

The trio walked out of the hospital and said their goodbyes. "And I expect you at work next week. Things haven't been the same since you left." Chief Bogo chuckled.

"Yeah," Nick admitted. "Things have been lonely without a partner. Now let's get you back home."

Chief Bogo went one way, to his car, and Nick and Judy went the opposite way, to the police cruiser.

Judy hopped in the passenger's side, and Nick took the wheel. She looked over to him. "I've never seen you drive. Do you even have a driver's license?" she questioned, narrowing her eyes at him.

He put his hand over his heart and said, "Oh, how you wound me. Of course I have one. I'm just too lazy usually." he smirked.

Judy rolled her eyes and chuckled. Nick still hadn't started the car. He just sat there, keys in his hand. He had a far-off look in his eyes.

She looked up at him, concerned. "Nick? What's wrong?"

He blinked and came back down to Earth. (Zootopia, that is) "Yeah, um… sorry. I was just thinking."

"About what?"

"What I would do without you."

"Oh…"

"Look, I- I know it sounds sappy, but really. I mean, while you were at the hospital, I… barely got past the days. You know, you mean a lot to me as a friend. If we had never met, I would still be on the streets, conning people out of their money… I just…"

He was silenced by a hug from Judy. She looked up at him, her eyes glistening. "I know. I love you too." she blushed bright red. "Not-Not like… I didn't mean-"

He smiled and hugged her back. "I know. I'm just glad you're okay." He sniffled and Judy could tell the hug was also a way to hide his tears.

She patted his back and said, "You foxes… So emotional…"

* * *

 **FINALLY I'M DONE SLAVING OVER- I mean... Oh no! It's over! Whatever-shall-I-dooooo? But, um, yeah! Thank you guys so much for all the great feedback and support! I had a lot of fun with this and hopefully I'll find time to write more! I hope you enjoyed my first fanfiction, and, well, see you all later! I'm out! PEACE! -drops mic-**


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